U.S. stocks rose at the opening bell for the first time since the start of the war in the Middle East

The three major U.S. stock indices began trading on March 4 - the fifth day of the U.S. war with Iran - with gains. The US stock market followed the European market in its optimism - and in contrast to the collapsing Asian indices. Investors are cheered by declining oil prices and are also closely following reports of possible negotiations between the conflicting sides.

- The main U.S. index S&P 500 rose by 0.3% in the first minutes after the opening of exchanges in New York. Then, however, it lost almost all of its gains and showed almost no dynamics.

- The blue-chip index Dow Jones Industrial Average added 170 points or 0.35%. But it did not hold in the green zone and went into decline, which reached 0.2%.

- "The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index rose 0.6 percent, after slowing slightly.

- The Russell 2000 index of small and mid-capitalization companies was adding about 1%.

- In contrast, the VIX index, known as the "Wall Street fear index," fell 4.7%. However, it remains above the psychological level of 20 points, indicating high volatility.

- Brent crude futures were down 0.6% to less than $81 a barrel.

- Spot gold prices rallied about 1.6 percent, with prices rising back above $5200 per troy ounce in Wednesday trading.

- Silver was also gaining, about 3.1%, reaching $86.8 for the day.

- The value of the dollar declined after its best two-day rally since April 2025.

- Bitcoin hit a high in about a month: it was worth about $71,900, adding about 8%.

Investors are watching for signals that may suggest how long the U.S. war against Iran will last: hopes that the conflict will be short-lived have lifted stocks and lowered oil prices, Bloomberg writes. Quotes on raw materials fell, in particular, after the publication of The New York Times that the Iranian side offered the U.S. to discuss the terms of the end of the war. In addition, on Wednesday, the head of the U.S. Treasury Department Scott Bessent told CNBC that the U.S. will take steps to ensure oil supplies from the Persian Gulf, the TV channel noted.

"The energy sector appears to have stabilized. The impact of the crisis has been limited - a constructive outcome for a broader range of risk assets. As the joint U.S.-Israeli operation in Iran continues, the remainder of this week will be a key period for risk asset market sentiment and overall market confidence," BMO Capital Markets analyst Ian Lindgen said in a Bloomberg note.

Investors should view every stock correction as a buying opportunity rather than a sign of the beginning of a bear market, according to Goldman Sachs analysts cited by Bloomberg.

"We are now in a headline-conscious business environment: competing stories yesterday [March 3] swayed market sentiment every hour. From a market perspective, the key issue is that there are no signs of de-escalation on either side, even more so that tensions are escalating," Deutsche Bank analyst Jim Reed argued in a note quoted by CNBC.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor